The last time BGSU hockey (4-3-3, 4-1-3) played the St. Thomas Tommies (4-5-2, 1-1-1) was on March 15 when the two teams met in the CCHA Mason Cup Semifinals at St. Thomas Ice Arena in Mendota Heights, Minnesota. The game resulted in the Falcons’ season coming to an end after falling 3-1.
For the first time this season and the first time since the semifinals loss, Bowling Green makes the trip to Minnesota to face St. Thomas, this time at UST’s brand-new Lee and Penny Anderson Arena in St. Paul, Minnesota.
BGSU enters the weekend currently tied for first in the CCHA standings with the Bemidji State Beavers (7-5-2, 5-1-2), with 17 points apiece, and is fresh off sweeping the Ferris State Bulldogs (2-10-0, 1-5-0).
St. Thomas currently ranks sixth in the CCHA standings but has only played three conference games so far this season. The Tommies only played one conference game last weekend, a shootout loss following a 4-4 draw to the Augustana Vikings (6-4-1, 3-3-1). UST also played a nonconference game last week as they skated to a 3-1 victory over St. Cloud State (6-6-0, 1-3-0) of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC).
Offensively, St. Thomas has been led by graduate forward Alex Gaffney, who is playing in his first season for the Purple and Gray after playing four seasons in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) with Harvard University (4-1-1, 3-1-0). Gaffney currently leads the Tommies in points (15), goals (7), assists (8), and power-play goals (3). Gaffney is currently tied for first place in the CCHA for goals, sits at seventh in the CCHA for points, and ranks third in the CCHA for points.
Another notable offensive contributor for the Tommis is senior forward and team captain Lucas Wahlin. Wahlin has appeared in nine of the Purple and Gray’s 11 games and has scored three goals and four assists on the season. Wahlin is also no stranger to scoring against BG, as he scored a total of three goals and two assists over the five games between the two teams last season.
Bowling Green’s offense flourished last weekend against FSU, with the team scoring a total of 14 goals and having 18 different players contribute at least one point on the weekend.
After the weekend series, freshman forwards Noah Morneau and Dominik Rymon were awarded the CCHA Forward of the Week and Rookie of the Week awards, respectively. Morneau scored a total of four goals and two assists over the series, with Rymon contributing two goals and three assists.
On the season, Morneau and senior forward Quinn Emerson currently lead the team in points with 11 apiece. Junior forward Tyler Hotson (10) and Rymon (9) follow closely behind.
Morneau also leads the team in goal scoring with the Windsor, Ontario native scoring seven goals so far this season. Alternate captain and senior forward Jaden Grant’s four goals on the year rank as the second-best on the team.
From a goaltending standpoint, both teams have three goalies on their rosters who have all received playing time this season.
Bowling Green has had freshman Jacob Steinman, Tyler Palmer, and junior Cole Moore all play throughout the season. Palmer has the best statistical numbers of the group and has posted a 2.06 goals against average while recording a .908 save percentage in his four appearances. Steinman follows closely behind with the freshman recording a 2.40 goals against average and a .908 save percentage while playing in six different contests for the Falcons.
UST has had senior Aaron Trotter, sophomore Carsen Musser, and freshman Will Ingemann all make appearances between the pipes. While playing in fewer games than his fellow netminders, Trotter has posted the best statistics and currently sits at 2.24 goals against average and a .929 save percentage on the season after appearing in three games. Freshman Ingemann, a native of Plymouth, Minnesota, has appeared in the most games for the Tommies with six and has posted a respectable 2.58 goals against average and a .906 save percentage to start his college career.
While the Falcons and Tommies are neck and neck or at the very least pretty close to one another in most team statistical categories, one category that BG has a clear advantage in is faceoffs. BG has won a total of 373 faceoffs this season and posted a .569 team faceoff win percentage, which ranks them as first in the CCHA and second in the NCAA for faceoff win percentage. To compare, St. Thomas currently ranks eighth in the CCHA in the category and has recorded a .457 faceoff win percentage on the season.
A couple of categories where St. Thomas seems to have a noticeable advantage over BG include scoring short-handed goals and staying out of the penalty box. UST has scored four shorthanded goals this season, while Bowling Green has only scored one. Additionally, St. Thomas has done a good job of staying out of the box and currently averages 7:27 minutes in the penalty box each game as opposed to BGSU, who average 11:36.
St. Thomas and Bowling Green will play their series on Nov. 21 and 22 at UST’s Lee and Penny Anderson Arena, with puck drop scheduled for 8:07 p.m. on Friday and 7:07 on Saturday.
Falcon Media Sports Network’s Nathan Burkett will have the live call from St. Paul, Minnesota, on WBGU 88.1 FM.
FALCON FOUR PLAYERS TO WATCH
Graduate Forward – Alex Gaffney, St. Thomas
Gaffney has impressed early in his first season in the CCHA with St. Thomas. Currently ranking among the best in the conference in multiple categories, the West Orange, New Jersey native has provided the Tommies with a much-needed offensive spark after the departure of Liam Malmquist and Cooper Gay. Gaffney was held off the scoresheet against Augustana and will look to get back on the scoresheet in his first career game against the Falcons.
Senior Forward – Lucas Wahlin, St. Thomas
Wahlin has always been a staple for offensive production for the Tommies. Despite missing two games, Wahlin currently ranks second on the team in points and is on a three-game point streak that he will look to carry into this weekend’s series.
Freshman Forward – Noah Morneau, Bowling Green
Noah Morneau has won CCHA weekly awards both of the last two weekends after winning the CCHA Rookie of the Week award following the Minnesota State series and nabbing the CCHA Forward of the Week award following the Ferris State series. Morneau’s seven goals currently lead the team, and the freshman has scored six goals in the team’s last four games, including a hat trick performance during BG’s 9-5 victory over Ferris State on Nov. 14.
Junior Forward – Brody Waters, Bowling Green
Waters led the Falcons in goals last season with 16. This season, the Heidelberg, Ontario native was held out of the goal category for the first eight games of the season. However, Waters scored a total of three goals last weekend against Ferris State and will look to continue his two-game goal streak after finally pulling the monkey off his back.
